The invention relates to a suspension for a vehicle wheel axle having a rigid axle member, in particular a driving axle, with at least one upper guide leaf and at least one bottom bearing leaf, each on both sides of the longitudinal median plane of the vehicle, which together form a parabolic guide. At their front ends they are articulated at a preferably common bearing point, formed e.g. by a bearing bolt perpendicular to the longitudinal median plane of the vehicle of the chassis. Between their front and rear ends they are clamped rigidly to the axle member, preferably above the axle member. The rear end of the guide leaf can be moved longitudinally on the chassis, and a bearing arm of the bearing leaf, projecting rearwards from the the axle member, forms a bottom bearing of an air spring on whose upper end the chassis is supported.
Such an axle suspension is known for example, from FIG. 2 of DE-PS No. 21 00 048. In this case the bearing bolt for the reception of the front ends of the guide leaf and the bearing leaf is mounted on the chassis at a considerable distance above the axle member. The guide leaf extends essentially horizontally and has, over its entire length, a constant cross-section. The front section of the bearing leaf is designed as a parabolic spring, whereas a separate bearing arm with an extension projects over the axle member towards the front and together with the rear end of the bearing leaf and of the guide leaf are clamped together with a stirrup above the axle member. Of course, such a suspension has withstood the test, but since the guide leaf can bend, it has a limited spring deflection of about 180 mm, measured at the axle member. Furthermore, the axle member pivots in a circular arc around the front spring bearing point. Thus with unilateral compression, the axle develops bump steering behavior. Also, in the case of a driving axle during compression, the Cardan shaft angle between the front and rear joint changes, which is undesirable. Furthermore, the sliding part of the Cardan shaft can shift; such movements can result in increased wear. Also, the length of the known driving axle air spring extension is relatively large, which is in particular, an impediment for semi-trailer tractors. Since the front spring bearing point of the guide leaf and bearing leaf lies relatively high above the axle member, there is an unhinging effect during rearward braking.